A BOLTON publisher is launching a mindfulness colouring book on Kickstarter to help save Chester Zoo from financial difficulties.

The zoo, which was forced to close during lockdown, costs £1.6m a month to run and gets 97% of its income from visitors.

It has turned to crowdfunding, raising over £2m after bosses said the crisis had left it "at risk of extinction".

Richard David Lawman, chief creative officer of WatAdventure Publishing, is now answering the call for help after he was approached by

Manchester-based art director Emily Chrimes with an idea to create a colouring book.

Save Our Zoo will see 30 illustrators from all over the world contributing to the book with designs submitted from the UK, Australia, India, the Netherlands and the USA.

Richard said: “When Emily shared her idea with me it was exactly the sort of innovative publishing project that WatAdventure loves.

"A book that ostensibly serves a good cause - to save Chester Zoo - but it does so much more.”

“During this dreaded pandemic we’ve seen our mental health take a battering, with lots to worry about and little to look forward to. More and more people are looking for ways to help manage their stress levels and colouring books are a simple solution.”

Creator of the book, Emily, 24, from Manchester said: “I’ve always been a creative person and when I heard of Chester Zoo’s financial struggle, I just couldn’t sit still.

"Chester Zoo holds so many special childhood memories and I would hate for children of today to lose the amazing experience of seeing and learning about their wonderful creatures.”

“Working in a creative industry I've seen illustrators struggle to get work and stay motivated in lockdown, so I wanted to give them something meaningful and inspiring to work on.

"Keeping our mental health in check is something we all need to pay more attention to and adult colouring books are a simple way to reduce anxiety and release endorphins by getting creative.”

If the funding goal is reached, the books will be printed at Charlesworth Press in Yorkshire, a printer who specialises in special and unusual book projects.

WatAdventure are launching an adult and a children’s version of the colouring book which are available on Kickstarter along with some other products and bundles.

All profits from the books will be donated to Chester Zoo.

You can support the project by visiting their Kickstarter page at kickstarter.com/projects/watadventure/save-our-zoo-a-mindfulness-colouring-book-for-chester-zoo